Blog | Umeo Road (Porch House) by Johnston Marklee

Designed by acclaimed L.A. architecture firm Johnston Marklee, the Umeo Road project (also known as the Porch House) sat perched on a sloping Brentwood site with sweeping vistas. Built as a cast-in-place concrete structure, the home features a south-facing main living space designed to dissolve completely, transforming the indoor living experience into an open-air pavilion.

To realize this ambitious spatial vision, Goldbrecht engineered and installed monumental Vitrocsa 16' tall sliding units.

Engineering Scale: 16-Foot Tall Vitrocsa Sliding Units

Executing a continuous 16-foot glass elevation presents immense engineering challenges. Systems of this scale must withstand high coastal wind loads and maintain extreme energy efficiency without compromising.

 By leveraging Vitrocsa's patented micro-bearing track components and Swiss-engineered mechanics, Goldbrecht delivered 16-foot tall sliding panels. Recessed flush into the concrete floor and ceiling plates, the ultra-slim profiles allow the massive glass panels to virtually disappear—flooding the interior with natural daylight and opening the house directly to the coastal breeze.

THE ORIGINAL MINIMALIST WINDOW

The Vitrocsa Invisible Wall is the world's original frameless system. Experience the transformation of an innovator into a world-class luxury window systems provider with exceptional service and a US-based manufacturing and technical support center. Invented in 1992, its patented engineering defined modern architecture through the world's slimmest 3/4" sightlines. Today, it is the choice of Pritzker Prize-winning architects and visionary design firms worldwide.

Unrivaled Flexibility for Landmark Architecture

The Invisible Wall's patented components allow for unrivaled flexibility across custom configurations. Beyond monumental horizontal sliding systems, our product portfolio features the architectural versatility of fixed, pivoting, outswing, vertical, and turnable corner systems, alongside the power of HIRT kinetics retracting glass walls, and our newly-introduced German aluminum and Italian steel lines. We continue to push the boundaries of windows and doors to develop the industry further.

Ready to integrate Vitrocsa into your next commission? REQUEST A QUOTE from the Goldbrecht technical team today.